By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Karla Batres and her husband, Sergio Martinez, are putting the “fun” back in fundraiser. Just one day after the couple announced a fundraiser for a friend, the donations began pouring in. The Chase the Cause 5K for Juenesse Amendola is this Saturday, Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. The event, complete with music from DJ Polo Cee, will take place at Brit Spaugh Park, but it’s no ordinary 5K.
“It is definitely not a race, so please make sure that doesn’t hold you back,” Batres said. “We’re going to run it all together. It’s slow and steady, having a good time, dancing and enjoying the music, and enjoying each other’s company. That’s it. We aren’t going to have a winner. We aren’t going to have anybody in the lead. We’re all doing it together.”
Amendola, a 2005 graduate of Great Bend High School, was diagnosed with Stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma on Jan. 30, 2025. The good news is she has beat the cancer, ringing the bell in March of this year. The bad news is the fight came with a cost. Along with the physical and mental strain of battling cancer, there is also the financial burden. Batres survived her own medical ordeal, and remembers friends and families stepping in to help erase those negative memories and create new, good ones. Now, she’s paying it forward.
“I wanted her to be able to do something for her family, maybe get to leave and take a little vacation, or even if meant just taking some of that financial burden off of her so she could be home more and didn’t have to work as much,” Batres said. “We’re hoping we would be able to provide her with maybe a month’s worth of financial support so she can relax a little bit and hopefully allow her body to heal.”
Alicia Enriquez with Massage by Alicia will provide massages to runners before and after the run. Alejandra Valadez with Ink Thread will be selling custom shirts, and Gabby Hildago with Gomitas Toxicas will be selling sweet treats.
Chase the Cause is a fundraiser. Runners age 13 and over are asked to donate $30, and there is $15 donation for runners 12 and younger. Along with a variety of music provided by DJ Polo Cee, several vendors will also be on site to create a truly festive atmosphere. Participants in Chase the Cause are encouraged to wear pink.
"Our path will take us down Main Street, which will be really cool for the city to see what a Live DJ Run will look like," said Batres. "It loops around the library, which is where our first water stop will be. It takes down to the high school, which is where our second water stop will be. Then it takes us back to Brit Spaugh Park, which is where the run will end."
CLICK HERE to register online. Batres is accepting registration and donations via Venmo (@Karla-MartinezBatres) or Cash App ($KarlaMartinezBatres). Donations may be made without registering for the 5K. In-person registration will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot of the city pool. Vendors will also be staged there before and after the run.